Davao Oriental thanks national government for
its assistance toward recovery from typhoon ‘Pablo’

(CATEEL, Davao Oriental) For mobilizing the
entire national government machinery to address their urgent concerns following
the onslaught of super typhoon ‘Pablo’ (Bopha), the people of Davao Oriental
thanked President Benigno S. Aquino III during the ‘Pulong Bayan sa Cateel’
program held Monday morning in this town’s municipal plaza.

Speaking on behalf of her constituents, Davao
Oriental Governor Corazon Malanyaon said they consider it as a ‘great honor and
privilege’ to have Cateel chosen as one of the venues for this year’s
commemorative celebration of EDSA, graced by President Aquino and some members
of his Cabinet.

“The historical incident of EDSA was triggered
by political upheavals, yet it has a striking similarity to the climate-related
‘Pablo’ incident our province had just experienced. EDSA Revolution was a story
of resiliency, of faith and hope, of rising from the rubbles; our ‘Building
Back Better Davao Oriental’ is also a story of resilience, of faith and hope
that we shall overcome, and of rising from the devastation of typhoon ‘Pablo’,”
Malanyaon said.

Malanyaon reported to the President various
forms of aid gained by her province from different national government agencies
that helped them get back on their feet after being hit by the monstrous storm
in December 2012.

Super typhoon ‘Pablo’ claimed hundreds of lives,
displaced thousands of families, and destroyed billions worth of
infrastructures, private structures, and properties in Davao Oriental alone,
which prompted President Aquino to create a special task force led by Secretary
Rene Almendras to facilitate a smooth disaster response mechanism for all the
affected areas.

“A one-year period with some disruptions seemed
too short to regain some semblance of normalcy, and to heal from our painful ‘Pablo’
experience, yet we have done and achieved so much. But all these would not have
been possible without the support of the national government under the present
leadership,” Malanyaon said.

In terms of housing, Malanyaon said the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) managed to immediately
construct temporary shelters for homeless families and distributed cash
assistance to those whose houses were partially damaged by the storm.

The DSWD also already provided Davao Oriental
initial funds to be used in the construction of permanent shelters pegged at
P70,000 per unit. In addition, the National Housing Authority acquired lands as
well for its own housing projects for the province, which could provide shelter
for 3,391 families.

Meanwhile, two significant bridges destroyed by
‘Pablo’—the San Jose and Mandurigao bridges in Caraga—were immediately repaired
through the quick response teams sent by the Department of Public Works and
Highways (DPWH), restoring access to the towns of Cateel, Boston, and Baganga,
which were left isolated by ‘Pablo’ at the time.

The same bridges plus three others were also
damaged by last month’s low pressure area caused by ‘Agaton’, but have since
been fixed by the DPWH, including the Presidential Bridge of Lumao, Alegria of
this municipality.

In terms of public health, Department of Health
(DOH) augmented the support received by Davao Oriental from international
non-government organizations and other healthcare-related groups as it helped
repair a number of barangay health stations, including the Cateel District
Hospital.

Students in the affected towns are currently
occupying new school buildings donated by the charity wings of different media
networks such as ABS-CBN, GMA-7, TV-5 and other donors from the private sector
as both the Department of Education and the DPWH will still complete the
construction of 570 new classrooms.

While over a year has passed since ‘Pablo’ swept
Davao Oriental, debris clearing activities still continue in the province,
hence Malanyaon is grateful for the Debris Management Fund assistance provided
by President Aquino through the Department of Interior and Local Government.

The Department of Agriculture also remains
consistent with its support by distributing rice, corn, and vegetable seeds,
and cacao and cassava seedlings to over 8,000 farmers for their livelihood.
Livestock, draft animals, and poultry were also distributed.

Davao Oriental was also declared insurgency-free
by the Philippine Army four months after ‘Pablo’ hit the municipalities of
Cateel, Baganga, and Boston, making it easier for both the local and national
government to deliver basic services to affected residents.

As regards to their climate change adaptation
and disaster risk management, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, together with
the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology under the Department of
Science and Technology, assisted Davao Oriental in determining geohazard areas,
which are now strongly observed in the establishment of resettlements, and in
the updating of the local land use plans.

If there is one area that remains to be a
concern for Davao Oriental until now, that would be power supply, as Malanyaon
reported that 24 barangays or 57 percent of their province are still not
re-energized.

In line with this, she is hoping that the fund
requested by the Davao Oriental Electric Cooperative from the National Electrification
Administration and the Department of Energy would be granted soon to restore
energy in all the affected villages.

Malanyaon acknowledged the fact that more has to
be done in order to translate the ‘build-back-better’ principle into concrete reality,
but having a solid support from the national government and other development
collaborators enables them to go a step further towards reaching that goal.

“And so, in behalf of the people of Davao
Oriental, let me acknowledge and extend our wholehearted thanks and
appreciation to His Excellency, President Benigno S. Aquino III, for mobilizing
the whole national government machinery to address our urgent concerns… We can
do more and we can do better in the coming years… Always with that undaunted spirit
‘to move on and to move up’ as our mantra goes,” Malanyaon said. PND (hdc)

President Aquino visits Cateel, Davao Oriental

(CATEEL, Davao Oriental) Despite the erratic
weather currently being experienced in this part of Mindanao, President Benigno
S. Aquino III was able to push through with his planned engagements here to
personally pay tribute to the resiliency displayed by the victims of super
typhoon ‘Pablo’.

President Aquino arrived here Monday to start
his five-province tour this week, in solidarity with survivors of natural
calamities that hit the country recently, as part of this year’s celebration of
the 1986 EDSA People Power revolution.

Upon his arrival, President Aquino conducted an
aerial inspection of some of Davao Oriental’s chili farms, amusingly dubbed by
local folks as ‘Hot Pablo’, rice plantations, and the Presidential Bridge of
Lumao, Alegria on his way to Cateel Municipal Plaza where a short program was
held.

Residents of Davao Oriental patiently waited for
the President, who came two hours late at the Cateel Municipal Plaza, given the
presence of thick rainclouds prompted his aircraft to take a different route.

President Aquino said he was amazed at seeing
how much Cateel has changed since the last time he visited the area in the wake
of super typhoon ‘Pablo’. What used to be a picture of devastation has turned
into a resilient community.

During the program, three beneficiaries of
various rehabilitation and recovery projects being implemented by both the
national and local governments here stood before the President to share their
stories and thank him for the assistance his administration has extended.

President Aquino’s visit in Cateel lasted for
about 20 to 30 minutes as he is scheduled to be in Loon, Bohol for the
second-leg of his trip, where he is expected to hold a townhall meeting with
the victims of last year’s 7.2-magnitude earthquake. PND (hdc)